Two Lonely Children
by hinatasgreatestfan
Summary: Naruto finds Hinata on the streets during a rainy night. What changes will this seemingly innocuous event lead to?
1. A Friend In Need

Chapter 1

Naruto Uzumaki looked up from the book he was reading. He had to give a slight smile as he heard the drumming of the rain on his roof. He had always liked the rain. Granted, he understood why a lot of people didn't like the rain: it was cold, it could really hurt when it came down hard, it was never comfortable being wet, and, really, being stuck in the rain was never fun. However, if you went out in it on purpose, when it was a soft rain, like it was that night, and when it wasn't too cold, it was actually quite comforting. He set his book aside and looked out his window. It was a dark night, obviously, but the rain made what light there was reflect and refract and made it easy to see nonetheless. _"It's a perfect night to go for a walk,_" he thought to himself. As he opened the door to his small apartment, he had no idea his life was about to change forever.

Hinata Hyuga was crying. As the tears fell down her face, she looked up into the falling rain and felt its cooling drops run over her. This had been the worst day of her young life. She closed her eyes and let the rain pour over her, knowing she would probably end up getting sick; honestly, she didn't care. She sighed and leaned backward, feeling the solid wall behind her. She slowly slid down until she was sitting on the ground. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them and slowly began to go over the events of this horrible day in her mind.

First her father had forced her to spar with her sister Hanabi. She had lost. It didn't help that Hinata had been holding back out of fear of hurting Hanabi, whereas Hanabi had clearly had no such reservations. "You're a disgrace," her father had said. He turned his back on her and walked away. Hinata, tears already in her lavender eyes, rose and ran from the Hyuga compound.

She wasn't watching where she was going; in retrospect, she really should have been. Since she was just running headlong down the street, though, she never saw that boy, the one with the ice cream cone. She slammed into him before she saw him, making him drop the treat onto the ground and setting off his temper. The boy and his two cronies had dragged her into the forest and forced her onto her knees, where they demanded she apologize. She tried, crying hard, telling them she was sorry, but the boys didn't seem to think that was enough. Just before they could actually do something to hurt her, the one bright spot of this awful day came to her rescue.

"Cut it out!" a voice said. Looking up, Hinata was surprised to recognize the boy she had seen sitting on the swing at the Academy not long ago. His blond spiky hair was more than a little distinct. She had been told not to associate with this boy, and yet, here he was, coming to her defense without even knowing what was happening. As her tormentors turned to her savior and attacked him, both physically and verbally, Hinata's guardian, a main-branch Hyuga named Ko, came and scared them off. He then took Hinata's hand and led her away, forcing her to leave her savior behind, beaten and bruised, laying on the ground.

Upon arriving home, Hinata's day had only gotten worse. She had been called before her father. Hiashi Hyuga, head of the clan and Hinata's father, had looked down at her with a look of disgust on his face. "I always knew you were weak, Hinata, but this day has shown me you're a disgrace and a hopeless failure," he said. Hinata forced herself not to cry at his words; she craved his approval so much and here he was telling her she'd never earn it. He continued with his tirade. "Your Byakugan is even weaker than Hanabi's, while she is five years your junior. In spite of being a main branch Hyuga, you have no proficiency with either the Gentle Fist style or Rotation. Your moves are hesitant, your attacks are weak, and your style is sloppy. And then I hear that today you allowed yourself to be beaten and controlled by _civilians_." He said the final word with disgust in his voice. Hinata looked up in fear as she saw his eyes fill with more rage than she'd ever seen the stoic man show. "You are no longer Hyuga," he continued, his voice still controlled. "Your Byakugan is so weak there is no point in sealing you as you will not pass it on to your children anyway. Get out of my sight, _failure_."

So it was that Hinata found herself on the streets this night, crying her eyes out, getting soaked in the rain. Little did she know her day was about to go from being her worst to being one of the best of her life.

Naruto grinned as he walked down the empty streets. The rain, soft, gentle, was calming, cleansing, and overall pleasant. The soft pitter-patter of the rain on the roofs and ground had a rhythmic sound to it, and it made Naruto feel like dancing. Then he heard a different sound. Naruto hadn't been paying much attention to where he was, and he had somehow ended up in the neighborhood of the Hyuga compound. As he drew nearer to the place, he found himself hearing a sound that made his heart clench. He heard the sound of someone crying.

Naruto had always been a kind person by nature, so hearing someone in pain was like a knife to his heart. Hearing someone crying was even worse, and this was both. He didn't think, he just moved. He moved toward the sound, determined to do something about it.

Hinata was reliving every moment of her day over and over again, and her sobs racked her body painfully. Every time she got to the part where the young boy had saved her, she smiled, but then she remembered being made to leave him behind and the words of her father afterward and she cried even harder.

Naruto found the source of the sounds he was hearing rather easily. It was a small girl, her dark hair soaked, her face hidden as she sobbed into her knees. He approached slowly, hoping not to scare the girl. "Hey," he said quietly. She didn't react, seemingly not hearing him. Naruto sighed in frustration. "Hey," he said a little louder. Still no reaction from the small girl. He shook his head and moved closer to her and hesitantly put his arm around her shoulders.

Hinata jumped when she felt an arm go around her. She turned her head hesitantly and found, to her shock, that the boy who had saved her from the bullies earlier that day was now kneeling beside her and had an arm around her. Not bothering to wonder why he was there or how he found her, Hinata flung herself into the boy's arms and sobbed onto his shoulder.

Naruto was shocked when the young girl threw herself at him and cried on his shoulder, but he didn't push her away; he was too kind for that. Instead, he gently put both arms around the girl and simply held her, letting her cry. The young blond slowly began to rub the girl's back, trying to comfort her. After a few moments, he noticed her sobs weren't racking her body quite as fiercely.

Continuing to hold the sobbing girl, Naruto looked up into the rain. He sighed. The rain was so nice, but here he was having to comfort someone who couldn't just appreciate the rain. He sighed again; things could always be worse, after all.

It took a solid ten minutes for the small girl in Naruto's arms to cry herself out. Once she did, however, Naruto was stunned to feel her go completely limp in his arms. Looking down, he had to smile at how cute the now asleep girl looked. He carefully lifted her into his arms. _"I better get her out of this rain,"_ he thought. He looked around a moment and spotted a small bag that seemed like something the girl would have had with her; plus, for being on the ground in an alley, it was remarkably clean, so he figured it was probably hers. Picking it up, he walked out of the remote alleyway where he'd found the girl, who was so light in his arms he could barely tell he was carrying her, and made his way home.

Arriving to his small apartment, Naruto set the girl in his arms onto his couch gently and set her bag on the floor beside her. Then, he turned and turned a light on. Looking back at the girl, he nearly keeled over in shock. "It's her..." he said, his voice soft. He had seen this girl before; earlier that very day in fact. He had saved her from a group of kids who were bullying her. Of course, he doubted she'd ever recognize him or thank him, but he'd probably never forget that; it was the first time he'd ever saved anyone. As he watched, the girl slowly opened her eyes.

Hinata rubbed her eyes tiredly and sat up. "Where am I?" she asked. She didn't expect an answer, and she got none. She looked around. She was sitting on a small couch, which was resting against one wall of a tiny apartment. The majority of the apartment was dominated by a full-sized bed. There was a table to one side and a small kitchen area along one wall. She could see a door that she assumed led to a bathroom, and that was it. Then she looked a little closer to where she was and found a blond boy sitting on his haunches on the floor and staring at her, slack-jawed.

Naruto shook his head when he realized the girl he'd brought home with him was looking at him. "Oh, hi," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry for shocking you like this, but I found you out on the street and when you fell asleep, I brought you here to get out of the rain."

Hinata blushed and bowed as much as she could while sitting down. "Thank you," she said quietly.

Naruto gasped. "Did you...just thank me?" he asked.

Hinata giggled. "Of course. You have done me a service, and it is only natural to thank someone when they have helped you," she told him.

Naruto looked at her a little suspiciously. "Who are you?" he asked.

Hinata blushed again. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm Hinata H-" she stopped herself. "Just Hinata."

Naruto grinned. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki! And one day, I'm going to-"

"-be Hokage?" Hinata interrupted. Naruto looked surprised, then nodded. "So it was you! You saved me from those bullies earlier today." Naruto blushed and rubbed the back of his head again, nodding. "Thank you for that, too, Naruto," Hinata said.

Naruto gasped. Twice now in less than five minutes, this girl had thanked him for doing things for her. What's more, she didn't ridicule him about his dream of being Hokage! "So, Hinata, what were you doing out in the middle of the night on a night like this? And why were you crying? Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked.

Hinata blushed at his offer, then sighed. It took her a few minutes to fill Naruto in on what had happened to her that day. By the time the soft-spoken girl had finished, Naruto was snarling. "Naruto?" Hinata said. Said boy turned and looked at her, one eyebrow raised in question. "Don't do anything to them. I know they hurt me, but they're still my family, and I still love them. So please, don't do anything to them."

Naruto took a deep breath to calm himself down, then nodded. "All right, Hinata, I won't. But there are a few things I can do for you," he said. Hinata looked even more confused now. "First off, until we figure out what we're going to do, you can stay here with me. I know it's not much, but at least you won't be on the streets." Hinata blushed fiercely at that, then thought about it a moment. The boy was right, being here would be better than being on the streets. She nodded her acceptance. Naruto grinned. "The other thing I can do for you is help you prove your family wrong about you. I can tell you're a strong, kind person, and we're going to train like mad until you can show your family that too!" Hinata smiled at Naruto's confidence and nodded again.

"All right, Naruto, and thank you, for everything," she said. Naruto grinned. After thinking a moment, Naruto burst into a whirlwind of activity. Hinata felt her head spinning as she tried to keep up with what the blond was doing.

After a few moments, Naruto appeared in front of Hinata, a towel in hand. Hinata looked at him in confusion. Naruto handed her the towel and pointed to the bathroom; only then did Hinata realize the shower was running. "I started the shower for you. You need to get out of your wet clothes or you're going to get sick," he said. "I set an old shirt and shorts in there that I think will fit you; you can wear those until your clothes are dry."

Hinata slowly nodded, took the towel from Naruto, and went into the bathroom. She smiled at the clothes she found waiting for her. They probably would fit her, and they were in pretty good shape, considering Naruto called them "old" clothes. Stripping quickly, she stepped into the shower. She sighed pleasantly as the warm water hit her.

Naruto heard the shower open and close. "Hey Hinata?" he called. He heard her acknowledge that she'd heard him from within. "I'm going to step in there and grab your wet clothes real quick. Don't worry, I won't peek at you." Hinata called back that that was fine, and Naruto did as he'd said he would. Taking her soaked clothes into a room Hinata hadn't noticed on her brief perusal of the apartment, he tossed them into the washer that was there. Turning it on, he sighed; oh well, he'd been due to do a load anyway.

Hinata washed her hair, wringing it out by hand then soaking it again, washing out the rain water. She sighed; it always felt so much better to be clean. As she washed her body, she cringed as she got to certain spots that were still tender from her spar with Hanabi.

Naruto sat on the couch for a few minutes, then suddenly realized he'd forgotten something. Opening Hinata's bag, he dug into it a few moments, then found what he was looking for in it. Grabbing the item in question, he got up and walked to the bathroom door.

Hinata sighed as she finished her shower. She opened the shower curtain and stepped out, planning to ask Naruto about how to turn it off after she was dressed. Just as she stepped out, however, she heard the bathroom door open. Hinata froze.

Naruto opened the door, eyes on the floor, and took a step into the room. Looking up, he got an eyeful. He blushed deeply, knowing that the sight he was seeing at that moment was one he would never in his life forget. For, standing there in front of him, in all her naked glory, was Hinata.


	2. Escaping a New Threat

Chapter 2

Naruto gasped and quickly looked away, blushing. "I am so sorry, Hinata, I didn't realize you'd gotten out of the shower," he said quickly. He held out the item he'd gotten out of her bag for her. "I realized I'd forgotten to put these in here for you."

Hinata blushed when she realized he was holding a pair of her panties, then quickly took them and, making sure he didn't look again, stepped into them. Naruto didn't dare move for fear he would see her again, so Hinata quickly dressed. "All right, Naruto," she said. "I'm dressed now." Hinata was embarrassed about this whole situation, but she didn't feel violated or anything like that; after all, it was just an accident.

Naruto looked up carefully then breathed a sigh of relief when he found her clothed this time. "I'm really sorry about that, Hinata," he said. Then, his curiosity got the better of him. "I couldn't help noticing, though...you're different from me. Why is that?"

Hinata gasped and blushed furiously; she was glad the room was hot since she could use that as an excuse for her red face if Naruto asked. "All girls are like me," she said. Looking around frantically, Hinata tried to think of some way to distract Naruto from their...physical differences. Her eyes landed on the still-running shower. "Oh, Naruto, how do you turn off your shower?"

Naruto, never realizing he was being subtly played, snapped his attention to the shower. "Oh, right, sorry," he said, then reached in and fiddled with the two knobs that controlled the water pressure and temperature. He explained briefly to Hinata how they worked. Hinata sighed in relief that her ploy had worked. "Is there anything else you need, Hinata?" Naruto asked after he had the water off and Hinata had yet to move.

"Oh! No, I'm fine, I should get my things and get ready for bed, though, I'm exhausted," she said, yawning. Naruto gave a small smile at how cute she was again, but he didn't say anything.

Shaking his head to help him focus, Naruto told Hinata, "Wait right here, I'll grab your bag for you." He disappeared a moment, then reappeared, bag in hand. Passing it to the girl, he vanished from the bathroom.

Once she was alone, Hinata let loose the breath she hadn't known she was holding and slumped onto the sink. Taking a moment to catch her breath and let her blush recede, she briefly combed her hair and brushed her teeth.

Stepping out of the bathroom, Hinata found Naruto sitting on the couch, seemingly deep in thought. "Naruto?" she asked quietly. He looked up at her and smiled briefly, then went back to thinking. "What is it, Naruto?"

Hinata watched in horrified fascination as Naruto put his thoughts aside and schooled his features to show her a cheerful smile. "Oh, it's nothing, Hinata," he said then. "Are you ready to head to bed?"

At the mention of bed, Hinata yawned. "Yeah, I guess I am," she said, chuckling slightly. Naruto smiled, then showed her to his room. Hinata crawled onto his bed. Naruto smiled at her. "Um, Naruto?" Hinata asked hesitantly.

"Yes, Hinata? What is it?" he answered, smiling slightly.

Patting the spot beside her, the young girl looked up at Naruto. "Stay with me? Please?"

Naruto gasped in surprise. "A-Are you sure, Hinata? I mean...it's not really...right for us to do that you know..." he said, his voice trailing off at the end as he realized he actually didn't want to leave her.

"I'm sure, Naruto. Just please stay," she said back. Naruto slowly crawled into bed beside her. He was surprised when the girl grabbed him and cuddled up to him like he was some kind of plushy, but he didn't push her away. Instead, he gently put his arms around her and held her.

Feeling the girl in his arms trembling, Naruto suddenly realize she was afraid to sleep alone. "Are you all right, Hinata?" he asked her.

Hinata looked up at Naruto. "I'm fine, as long as you're here," she said. "I'm sorry, Naruto, it's just that I really don't want to be alone tonight. Thank you for staying." That said, the two youngsters closed their eyes and drifted to sleep in one another's arms.

xxxxxx

Naruto opened his eyes slowly. He looked around, feeling oddly heavy. He was surprised when he found Hinata sound asleep with her head resting on his chest. Rather than awakening the sleeping girl, he rubbed her back gently, letting her sleep; after all, her weight on him, rather than bothering him, was actually rather comforting in its way.

Watching the girl sleep, Naruto was struck yet again by how cute she was. Her face looked so peaceful in sleep, and with her long dark hair framing her pale face, she looked...angelic somehow. He started humming softly, a tune he made up as he went. Eventually, the rubbing and the humming awoke the sleeping girl.

Hinata opened her eyes and looked around. It took her a moment to get her bearings; she wasn't in the Hyuga compound or her own bed, after all. Realizing she was still in the arms of her savior, as she still thought of Naruto from when he helped her with the bullies the day before, she smiled. Naruto returned her smile, still humming and rubbing her back gently.

"Good morning, beautiful," Naruto said, causing Hinata to blush.

"Good morning yourself," she said back after a moment. She thought a moment. "You stayed."

Naruto chuckled. "Well sure I stayed. You asked me to," he said, as if it was the most natural thing in the world; to him, it was.

Leaning forward, Hinata kissed Naruto on the cheek. "Thank you," she said. Naruto blushed at the kiss, then just smiled and got out of bed.

"All right, first, I'm going to make us some breakfast, then we're going to go talk to the Hokage and see what we can do about your situation. Oh, is there anything you left behind at your old place you want to get in particular?"

Hinata thought about that a moment, then gasped. "Oh! My diary! And my mother's necklace! I can't believe I forgot them!"

Naruto smiled softly. "It's okay, Hinata, we'll talk to the Hokage and see if he can help us get them back for you," he said. Hinata took a deep breath, then nodded, choosing to put her trust in Naruto. "Go ahead and get dressed, I'll make us some breakfast, and we can go see the old man." That said, the blond disappeared, leaving Hinata to dress in peace.

Naruto sighed. "It's a good thing I went to the store yesterday," Naruto said to himself. Moving quickly, he pulled out ingredients and began mixing, working efficiently and quietly. By the time Hinata emerged from the bedroom, dressed, Naruto was sliding a pan of cinnamon rolls into the oven.

Hinata gasped at the sight and smell of the huge sweet rolls. "How did you know, Naruto?" she asked. Naruto looked at her, confused. "Cinnamon rolls, they're my favorite!" she said.

Naruto grinned. "I'm glad. I was afraid you wouldn't like them," he said. "I just had the stuff for them, and I'd been meaning to make a batch for a while anyway, so it's your lucky day I guess."

Hinata smiled again. "It's very sweet of you to do all this for me," she said.

Naruto chuckled and waved her off. "Think nothing of it, Hinata," he said. "Now, I'll get dressed so we can go see the old man once we're done eating." That said, he went into his bedroom, changed, and came back out just in time to remove the rolls from the oven. Setting them on top of his stove, he cautioned, "They just came out, so they're really hot. Help yourself, but be careful, don't burn yourself." That said, he handed her a fork and knife to cut and withdraw the rolls from the pan.

Hinata nodded. She couldn't resist, so she immediately extracted one of the rolls from the pan, being careful to only touch it with her utensils. Sitting down at Naruto's table, she carefully began to eat the very hot sweet roll.

Naruto grabbed one of the rolls himself and sat down with her. The two ate in companionable silence. "All right, you ready to go talk to the Hokage and go get your stuff back?" Naruto asked when they were both done.

"Yep!" Hinata said cheerfully; she'd woken up in Naruto's arms, they'd eaten breakfast of her favorite food in the world together, and now they were going to go get her stuff back; it was going to be a good day, she just knew it!

The two lonely children made their way down the main street of the Leaf Village on their way to meet with the Hokage. Naruto looked at Hinata. He realized for the first time that the two of them really did have a lot in common. They had both lived their short lives so far being very lonely, never being accepted, always having everyone around them reject them just for being who they were. But now...now they had one another.

"Hinata," Naruto said softly. Hinata looked up at him, surprised to find a small smile on his face. She blushed at the intense look in his eyes, but smiled in return and nodded for him to go on. "I was just thinking how we've both always been alone, never having anyone. But now...we have one another, right?"

Hinata smiled again. "Right, Naruto, now we have one another."

"Good. And I promise, Hinata, I will never leave you to be alone again, I'll always be by your side," Naruto said, smiling softly. Hinata blushed as the import of his words sank in.

"I'll always be with you, too, Naruto," she said back, smiling at him. Naruto beamed at her words.

Looking up, Naruto saw that they had arrived at the Hokage Tower. "Well, here we are, Hinata, you ready?" Hinata nodded and the two made their way into the building and up to the Hokage's office. "Hey, Old Man, I need a word with you," Naruto said as he and Hinata entered said office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the aging Third Hokage, looked up at Naruto as he entered. "Oh, good morning, Naruto, what can I do for you today?" he asked. Naruto and Hinata spent the better part of the following half hour explaining their situation and what they needed. Hiruzen nodded. "I think I can take a short time to come help you. I need to talk to Hiashi, anyway."

A few minutes later, Naruto and Hinata were approaching the Hyuga compound with the Hokage in front of them. The Hokage demanded to be allowed in, along with his two followers. The two guards at the gate didn't dare defy him and allowed them all into the compound. Naruto and Hinata made a beeline for Hinata's room while the old man made his way more slowly toward Hiashi's study.

"I'll leave you here to get your things, Hinata," Naruto said. "I'm going to do some snooping, I'll be back soon." Hinata nodded. Naruto left her room and began to wander the halls of the building. He was wandering aimlessly, but always with his return route in the back of his mind, until he heard voices. That gave him a target, so he made his way toward where he heard them.

Approaching a door, Naruto realized the voices were coming from the room on the other side of the door. He quietly approached it. No one inside seemed to notice him. What he heard made him shake in horror.

"We are overriding you, Hiashi!" one voice said, anger apparent in the tone of the voice.

"Yes, if she is to be cast out of the clan, she must be sealed, and as you have obviously not yet filed the papers, she is still legally in our clan, so we WILL seal her!" another added, sounding triumphant.

"Lord Hokage?" a third voice, Naruto guessed this one was Hiashi, said, sounding fearful.

"I'm sorry, Hiashi, but they're right. She is still legally in your clan, which makes this an internal clan affair; I can do nothing," the voice of the Third Hokage said.

"I see," the previous voice responded, confirming Naruto's guess that it was Hiashi.

"We must get her now, while she is still in the compound," the first voice that had spoken said, this time sounding more arrogant than angry.

Naruto had heard enough. _"I'm not sure what it is they want to do to Hinata, but I will not let them do it!"_ he thought. That thought in mind, he left, making a beeline back to Hinata's room. He knocked on her door. "Hinata?"

"Yes, Naruto, what is it?" she asked, worried at the urgency she detected in his voice.

"Do you have everything you need?" he asked her. He didn't want to worry her, but they had to move and move fast if they wanted to get out of here.

"Yeah, I'm ready, why, what's wrong?" Hinata answered. She was surprised when Naruto burst into her room, grabbed her by the hand, and, pulling her behind him, ran from her room all the way out of the compound and back onto the street. He refused to let them stop until they were all the way back to his apartment. "Naruto, what in the world happened?"

"Hinata, they're going to seal you," he told her. Hinata gasped. Naruto took a deep breath. "When I was wandering around, I heard your father, the old man, and a bunch of other people talking, they were saying they were overriding your father and that they were going to seal you."

"But we're safe here, now, right?" Hinata asked. She knew it was a vain hope, somehow.

"No, I'm sure they know you're here with me by now..." he trailed off, thinking. Hinata looked worried. "Hinata...we have to go. We have to run away, away from the village, away from everything, at least until this all blows over. And we can't tell anyone we're going, not even the old man, he said he couldn't do anything to help us."

Hinata thought about that and everything else Naruto had told her. He was right, she realized. "All right, Naruto, we'll go," she said. "But we need to pack anything you have that we might need first."

Naruto nodded and grabbed a bag from his closet. "This has all my camping stuff in it, a tent, two sleeping bags—don't ask—and some stuff we can use to start fires, plus a few spare sets of clothes I have. Most of your stuff is still in that bag you had last night, so just grab that and I'll grab a few more things and we'll be good to go," he said.

Hinata nodded, went into the bedroom, and grabbed her bag from where she had left it that morning. Both youngsters grabbed their things from the bathroom and tossed them into their bags, and Naruto grabbed a box from the top of his closet. "I'll explain later, but I'm not going anywhere without this," he said. Hinata nodded. "So, are we ready now?"

Hinata thought a moment. "Yeah, though I don't know what we're going to do for food," she said.

Naruto chuckled. "Don't worry, I've got that covered. All right, let's get out of here," he told the young girl. Hinata nodded. Naruto grabbed her by the hand and the two left his apartment. Once they were back on street level, the two sprinted all the way to the village's main gate. There, the two waited until the gate guards were distracted, then ran as fast as they could out of the gate and into the forest outside the village proper.

Naruto and Hinata turned back and looked at the gate of the Hidden Leaf Village. "We will come back, some day," Naruto said, more to himself than Hinata. "Until then, goodbye, old friend." Hinata wasn't entirely sure if he was talking to the village itself or to the Hokage, but, really, she didn't see that it mattered all that much.

xxxxxx

While Naruto and Hinata were departing the village, the Hyuga clan was making its way to Naruto's apartment. The Third Hokage had accidentally told them where Hinata was staying, and they were on their way to find her. When they got there, Hiashi knocked on the door, hoping to soften the blow somewhat at least. No one answered. Activating his Byakugan, Hiashi commented, "There's no one here."

That was all the incentive the clan needed; they busted the door down and tore through the apartment looking for either the blond or their missing heiress. No sign of either was found. Just as they were leaving, Hiruzen stopped Hiashi and pointed to a spot in the closet that was completely dust-free, like something had just been moved. "Naruto would never take that unless he wasn't coming back for a while," the old man explained. "He's left the village, no doubt Hinata with him, to keep her away from your clan."

Hiashi smiled. "Good. He's saved her again, it seems," he said. "In the meantime, is there anyone you can send to keep an eye on them and make sure they're safe out there?"

Hiruzen thought about that. "There is, but it will take him a long time to get here, a couple years probably; he's in very deep cover at the moment," the Third responded.

Hiashi sighed. "Naruto's lived on his own, I'm sure he'll keep them alive at least. That will have to do. Please, do what you can, Lord Hokage," he said, his worry for his daughter obvious in his voice.

"I will, Hiashi, I will," Hiruzen responded. _"Oh, Naruto, what in the world were you thinking? Just be safe out there, Naruto, please be safe,"_ the old man thought. _"Your father would never forgive me if anything happened to you."_


	3. A New Path

Chapter 3

Naruto sighed as he and Hinata entered the forest outside the Leaf Village's main gate. He had never thought before that he would ever leave the village like this, yet here he was, running from the village like his life depended on it. His life didn't, but his first and only friend's freedom did, which, to him, was equally important. Speaking of his friend...

"We'll be back someday, Hinata," he said softly to the raven-haired girl walking a little behind him. "I just don't think I could protect you from your whole clan if we stayed in the village."

The boy sounded so down, Hinata couldn't help feeling sympathetic toward him. She moved up beside him and rested a hand on the crook of his elbow. "My hero," she said, smiling. Naruto looked at her in surprise and, seeing she was serious, blushed deeply. Hinata giggled. "Seriously, Naruto, it's fine, I understand," she told him. "I'm grateful that you would give up everything you had there to protect me."

Naruto smiled wryly. "You saw my apartment, Hinata," he said. Hinata nodded, confusion obvious in her eyes. "That's all I have. I have no family, no friends, no one but Old Man Hokage will even care that I'm gone."

Hinata looked at the boy in surprise again; she hadn't realized he was so alone. "If you're so alone...why did you help me?" she asked him. It wasn't that she was ungrateful, but she didn't understand why someone with no one to care for or protect them would do those things for someone else...especially someone they didn't know, and _especially_ a failure like her!

Naruto turned a small smile on his companion. "It's something Old Man Hokage told me once," he said, his voice betraying how deeply he already missed the Third. "It was when I first declared that I wanted to be Hokage."

Flashback

_Naruto was running toward the Hokage tower, excited. He'd finally decided what he wanted to do with his life. The Hokage had asked him a week before what his dream was, and, now, he could finally answer! "Old Man! Old Man!" he yelled out as he ran. He didn't stop as he crossed the lobby of the tower or as the secretaries tried to stop him. He didn't stop until he had burst into the Hokage's office. "Old Man!" he yelled once more for good measure. The Third Hokage, who was indeed an old man now, looked up from the paperwork he was forever dealing with and smiled at the young blond. "I know what my dream is!"_

_Hiruzen Sarutobi, Third Hokage of the Leaf Village, veteran of two wars, hardened shinobi, and long-time widower, smiled at the small boy who had burst into his office. "Oh, do you now? And what have you decided your dream is, Naruto?" he asked, his voice amused._

_Naruto pointed at the hat resting on the Hokage's head. "I'm going to be Hokage, just like you!" he told the man, his excitement diminished not at all. In response, Naruto was treated to a rare sight. The Third Hokage's eyes crinkled, the lines on his face deepened a bit as a smile slowly spread across his lips, and, unable to restrain himself, the old man burst into laughter. The military dictator of one of the five great shinobi nations laughed long, hard, and loud from deep in his belly until tears flowed from his eyes. Naruto, confused, asked the obvious question: "What's so funny?"_

_Wiping his eyes and breathing slowly, Hiruzen responded, "Nothing, Naruto, nothing at all. I think that is a most honorable and admirable dream, and, if you work hard, you will achieve it one day. First, though, I have to ask you, do you really know what it means to be Hokage?"_

_Naruto thought about that a moment. "It means you're the strongest shinobi in the land, right? That everyone looks up to you, respects you, and acknowledges that you're the best?" he asked, his voice rife with childlike innocence._

_Hiruzen chuckled. "While it's true that those things happen when you _are_ Hokage, that's not what being Hokage _means,"_ he said gently. Naruto looked at him in confusion. "When you are Hokage, every single person in the village must be precious to you. You must be willing to protect all of them with your life, even if they don't treat you the best. It means that you are their protector, their head, and their leader all rolled into one. You are the one they turn to when they are threatened, scared, or in need. You must earn their trust, their respect, and their love in order to actually _be_ Hokage. Otherwise, you are Hokage in name only. It is only by earning the acknowledgment of the people that you can truly _be_ Hokage. Becoming Hokage will not earn you their respect, earning it is only a single step on the road to becoming Hokage."_

_Naruto thought about that. "So, if I'm going to be Hokage, I'll have to protect everyone in the village, even if I don't know them?" he asked; he was mostly talking to himself, but the Third nodded anyway. Naruto nodded after a moment. "Then I guess I better get started right now!" With that, he ran from the Hokage's office in search of someone to protect, leaving a chuckling Hiruzen behind._

Flashback End

"So, when I saw you getting bullied that day, I knew immediately what I had to do," Naruto concluded. "It wasn't a question to me, you were in trouble, and if I was going to be Hokage, I had to protect you. It was just that simple."

Hinata smiled softly, then hugged Naruto. "Even so," she said, arms around his waist. "You did protect me. Naruto, even if no one else ever acknowledges you, you'll always be my hero."

Naruto blushed. "And I'll always be here for you, Hinata," he said after a moment. Hinata blushed as well at his comment. The two stopped and shared a hug for a few moments, then continued on down the path into the forest.

Naruto commented after a few moments, "You know, Hinata, as long as you're at my side, I feel like I could face the entire world." Hinata blushed again. "I mean, it doesn't matter who comes against us, so long as we're together, we'll be perfectly fine."

Hinata reached out shyly and intertwined her fingers with Naruto's. "It doesn't matter what enemy I encounter," she said quietly. "I know I'll always be fine so long as I've got my hero at my side."

The two spent the rest of that day walking in companionable silence with their hands linked. The bond they formed that day would be their saving grace in the darkest of times.

xxxxxx

Hiashi Hyuga, head of the Hyuga clan, sighed deeply as he entered the room where his council awaited him. Standing before them, he had to force himself to not attack each and every one of them. "It is done," he told them. Some looked confused, some angry, and a few apathetic. "Hinata is no longer Hyuga, you have no say over her. If she ever returns to this village, you will not touch her!" Here, the angry father unleashed a small amount of his Killer Intent on the few members of the council who were obviously seething over his words.

One of the confused members spoke then. "If Hinata is no longer a Hyuga, who will be the heir to your seat, Hiashi?" he asked.

Hiashi sighed again. "My younger daughter, Hanabi, will take my place when I step down," he answered. He hadn't been looking forward to telling them that, but what had to be done had to be done. "The paperwork for all of this has already been filed with the Hokage. I'm sure some of you in this room will come to regret what has been done this day." With that, the tall, regal man turned on his heel and stalked from the room, his annoyance obvious to those who knew him.

Hiashi made his way back to his study and sat at his desk. Pulling out a small scroll he had been delivered some time earlier that day from the Hokage's office, he opened it and read. By the time he had finished, an observer would have been treated to a rare sight indeed: Hiashi Hyuga, head of the stoic Hyuga clan, sat at his desk, _sobbing_ into his hands.

xxxxxx

The Third Hokage sighed as he looked over the scroll in his hands. The contents had been copied and the copy sent to Hiashi Hyuga, as they concerned him as well. _"Naruto,"_ the old man thought. _"What are you doing out there? Are you taking care of yourself? Of Hinata?"_ He hated to admit it, but he worried more about that one boy than about half of the villagers sometimes.

Rereading the scroll, he sighed again. He knew this had to be tearing his old student apart from the inside out. To know that his old student's son was out there, wandering the wilderness on his own at the age of eight years old, with another person his own age _depending_ on him to keep her alive no less, and that he could do absolutely _nothing_ to help the boy had to be making the Toad Sage an emotional mess.

The scroll in his hands had very few words. It simply stated, "Message received. Will retrieve foundling as soon as possible. Foundling must survive two years without assistance." Hiruzen took a long drag on his pipe, ruminating over the situation. He had informed Hiashi of this, along with a brief explanation of the code he and Jiraiya had been using. There really wasn't much more he could do. Technically, he supposed, he _could_ send one of his trusted ANBU to watch over Naruto, but that, he knew, would be a _very_ bad idea.

Given his past and the way he had grown up, Naruto wasn't exactly the trusting type. If he discovered that a Leaf ANBU was trailing him and Hinata, he would, at best, try to lose the man or, at worst, attack him. Hiruzen was nothing if not a realist, and he realized that Naruto would likely not trust the Leaf Village in general at the moment; given what had happened, he couldn't really blame the boy.

Hiruzen puffed on his pipe again, leaning back in his chair to think. It had been some years since he'd had a conundrum like this one. He wanted desperately to keep an eye on Naruto _somehow_, yet he couldn't without destroying whatever trust the boy had left in the village. In order to keep Naruto from hating the village, he had to do the one thing he hated doing most: nothing. He sighed again. This was going to be a long two years.

xxxxxx

Jiraiya looked at the scroll his old sensei had sent to him via messenger summons. He'd read the thing so many times by now he had its contents memorized. Not that there was a lot in it, and what was there was in code, but still, he knew every line in the thing intimately by now. All it said was, "Foundling has left the nest. Request immediate assistance."

On the one hand, Jiraiya understood why his sensei was alerting him. "Foundling" referred to his godson, after all! On the other, all it really accomplished was to give Jiraiya the worst case of guilt he'd ever felt in his life. The reason for this was quite simple. The Toad Sage was currently deep undercover, and there was _absolutely no way_ he could get out of where he was any sooner than _two years from now!_ He groaned again, his fingers tightening on the scroll. _"Oh, Naruto, why did you have to leave now?"_ he thought to himself. _"You goofy blonds are always getting me in trouble! Your father would come back from Shinigami's own gut if he thought I was neglecting you at a time like this and kill me!"_ That thought in mind, Jiraiya went over his mission plans yet again. He discovered that, with a little tweaking, he could knock off at most six months, but that _still_ left Naruto on his own in the wilderness for _a year and a half!_ Jiraiya growled deeply. He hated feeling helpless!

It really was too bad that Jiraiya's mission was completely necessary for village security. Otherwise, he would have gladly abandoned it to go and take care of Naruto. Even now, after not seeing the brat for eight years, Jiraiya could remember him the night he was born, blond spiky hair just like his dad's and, unless he missed his guess, as spirited as his red-headed mother. Jiraiya smiled briefly as fond memories of his old student and the kid's wife passed through his mind.

Jiraiya leaned back against the headboard of his bed a moment, thinking back to the times he'd spent with Minato and Kushina, back when Kushina was pregnant, before everything went to hell. For a moment, Jiraiya swore he saw the two standing before him. He smiled sadly, tears in his eyes. "What would you have me do?" he asked them. Minato and Kushina simply smiled in response before fading away. Jiraiya sighed. "I'm not sure if that means they're proud of me and to keep up the good work, or if that means they think that was a stupid question and the answer should be obvious!" he said to himself. He groaned again. "Ugh, even when I'm only imagining them they confuse the hell out of me without even saying a word!"

Jiraiya thumped his head a few times on the headboard where he was leaning, trying to think of anything he could do better than he was at present. There was _absolutely_ nothing else he could do to get out of there faster! NOTHING! He stomped around the room for several minutes, trying to work out his frustration. He hated feeling helpless like this. Sighing, he flopped down onto the bed and closed his eyes. Soon enough, he fell into a fitful sleep, rife with nightmares of Naruto surrounded by the enemy with no one to help him.

xxxxxx

Naruto and Hinata had spent hours walking deeper and deeper into the woods. Now, they found themselves at a small clearing along the path they were following. Naruto set down his bag. "This looks like a good place to camp for tonight," he said. Hinata looked around; it _did_ look like a good place, but them finding it so near to the evening seemed a little too...convenient somehow. Shrugging off her suspicions, Hinata moved over to help Naruto set up the tent and start a fire.

Hinata watched the young boy. He seemed to be very focused on what he was doing, but she caught him glancing at her a few times as they set up camp. Once the tent was set up, Naruto went to get water, while Hinata gathered firewood to keep their small fire going through the night. Naruto came back from getting water carrying a rather large hare. "I got us dinner!" he said, grinning. Hinata smiled and nodded; she was a peaceful person, yes, and she might not have liked killing, but they had to eat something, and the rabbit would do them both good.

Hinata was able to find several herbs around that she remembered her mother telling her were good for cooking, and she used them to season the meat. Once it was cooked, the two sat down and ate, both surprised at how flavorful and juicy the meat had turned out, given their less-than-ideal cooking method. After thinking a few minutes, Hinata asked shyly, "How did you catch the rabbit, Naruto?"

Naruto tensed up a moment, then sighed and answered, "I've camped out here before, that's how I knew where this place was. I have a few places where I keep traps set up out here, and don't worry, they don't spring unless I prime them, which I did when I went to get water. On my way back, I found this guy in one of them."

Hinata nodded. "I guess that's what you meant when you said you had food covered, huh?"

Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, that's what I meant. That box I brought with me...well, it'll help with that, too," he told her, hesitating when he considered explaining exactly what was in the box. Hinata accepted that, and the two finished off their dinner, then turned in for the night. Hinata was glad they only had one tent, though she'd never dare say that aloud. During the night, it rained softly, the sound on the roof of the tent reminding both Naruto and Hinata of the night when the blond had found the girl crying in the alley and invited her into his home.

Hinata scooted her sleeping bag over by Naruto's and curled up beside him, her head resting on his shoulder. Naruto responded by putting an arm gently around her.

"Naruto?" Hinata said softly, her voice heavy with sleepiness.

"Yeah, Hinata?" Naruto answered, his own voice slow, sluggish.

"Even if things haven't gone quite the way we thought they would, I'm glad we met," she said, blushing slightly in the darkness of the tent.

Naruto chuckled and squeezed Hinata's shoulders slightly. "Me too, Hinata," he said quietly. The two lonely children were surprised at how easily the rapidly-developing affection they felt for one another had chased away the harsh pain of rejection they had each felt back home. Soon, the two were asleep, lulled by the soft sound of the rain.


	4. Jeopardized Peace

Chapter 4

Hiruzen Sarutobi groaned aloud. The last three weeks had been the longest of his life. After Naruto had left, he had done everything he could to keep word of the disappearance of Naruto and Hinata from spreading. Despite his efforts, however, word had already somehow reached even as far as the Hidden Rock Village, if the message he was currently reading was to be believed. The message, like most of the ones the old man received, was in code. It read, "Have heard rumors of a sacrificed human and a deposed future head roaming free. Did the foundling pack an extra suitcase when it left the nest?"

Hiruzen chuckled at Jiraiya's word choice as he reread the brief message for what had to be the fiftieth time since he received it. He had already responded, telling Jiraiya that his suspicions were, in fact, accurate. His main worry, however, was the contents of Jiraiya's message. It was clear that, somehow or another, he had heard about Naruto and Hinata leaving the village from a completely independent source. If that was so, it was safe to assume that the Tsuchikage also knew about it...and would likely be searching for Naruto...or, rather, for Hinata. "Oh, Naruto..." Hiruzen said softly. "Be safe out there." Taking a deep breath, he added to himself, "If I survive two years of this, it'll be a miracle!"

Just as Hiruzen finished saying this, there was a knock at his door. When he called for the person to enter, it turned out to be Iruka Umino. The young teacher with the high topknot haircut and the scar across his face was usually a happy man and had a smile for everyone. Today, however, his face was grim, his mouth set, his eyes determined. "Lord Hokage," he began, "I need to speak to you concerning a matter of grave importance."

Hiruzen had to smile a little at Iruka's manner. He had liked the young man ever since he was a boy. He had watched over Iruka as he grew up from the class clown of his own generation to the fine young Chunin who stood before him now. Even if Iruka's current attitude was atypical of the young man, Hiruzen couldn't help but smile; he had missed Iruka and was glad to see him. "Yes, Iruka, what can I do for you?" he asked.

"I had noticed for a couple weeks that two students had disappeared from the Academy," Iruka said. "And now I hear that Naruto and Hinata have in fact left the village entirely. Is this true?" Hiruzen looked into Iruka's eyes a moment before nodding gravely. Iruka sighed, deflating a bit. "I was afraid of that." Iruka seemed to consider what he had learned for a moment, then he continued, "In that case, Lord Hokage, I feel it is necessary that I begin training and testing immediately to become a Jonin."

Hiruzen gasped. He had been trying to get Iruka to put himself forward as a candidate for Jonin promotion, but Iruka had always said the time wasn't right. Now, here he was, practically demanding it. "Why the sudden change of heart, Iruka?" he asked.

Iruka sighed. "Apparently, my skills and dedication are not enough, if two of my students can vanish from the village for weeks before I become aware of it. If that is the case, I feel I must better myself and become a better shinobi...and I feel that the best way for me to do that is to become a Jonin," he said. "I wish to remain a teacher, if possible, but I feel that the time for me to become a Jonin has come."

Hiruzen nodded. "I will see to it that you remain a teacher, Iruka; you are an exceptional instructor, and I feel that you serve your village best there. If you wish to become a Jonin, however, I will do what I can to help you, including training you myself if need be. I can also suggest others to help you train if necessary. Regardless, Iruka, you have made an old man proud. Your Will of Fire is strong, and I am proud to call you a Leaf shinobi," he said, smiling at the Chunin. After a brief pause, he added, "Is there anything else, Iruka?" Iruka shook his head. "In that case, you are dismissed." Iruka bowed to his leader and left his office. Hiruzen leaned back in his chair and lit his pipe. Puffing on it thoughtfully, he muttered to himself, "I still wish you could have stayed in the village, Naruto...but maybe there was a reason for this. I wonder...will you even know this old place by the time you return?"

Jiraiya

The Toad Sage was pacing back and forth across his hotel room, impatiently waiting for the toad he had sent to his old sensei to return. If the rumors he'd heard were true, not only was Naruto running around out in the wilderness, he had the former Hyuga clan heiress with him, and she wasn't sealed! On the one hand, that would certainly explain why Naruto was out there to begin with, and having someone with him was better than being alone, but, on the other hand, that would mean that Naruto wasn't just taking care of himself, he had a young girl, probably his own age, relying on him to take care of her, too! And Naruto was only eight years old! Jiraiya was sure the kid had at least some survival skills, having grown up alone, but could he really keep both himself _and_ someone else alive for two years?

Before the Sanin could continue down that depressing trail of thought, a puff of smoke appeared from nowhere, and, when it cleared, a toad was sitting in his room with a scroll attached to its back. Jiraiya reached out and removed the scroll. His hands shook as he opened it and began to read. He read the message over three times. The message itself didn't say much, and it was immediately obvious to the sage that his old sensei's words contained a hidden message. The scroll simply said, "Foundling's departure from the nest proves that the flame burning amongst the leaves burns brightly within him."

As Jiraiya read and reread the scroll, he slowly smiled as he remembered all the times his old sensei had referred to the "flame burning amongst the leaves". Once he realized what that meant, the message became clear to him, and the smile faded from his face as he came to understand that his worst fears had been realized. His godson, at the ripe old age of eight years old, was wandering around in the wilderness with a young girl his own age relying on him to keep her alive and safe! Jiraiya gave a slight growl. He hated feeling helpless, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do for these two for, at the very least, seventeen months! The aging man had berated himself at least a thousand times in the last three weeks because of his helplessness. "What am I supposed to do?" he asked the toad rhetorically. It croaked in response. "Yeah, that's what I thought." He resumed his restless pacing, muttering to himself as he barely restrained himself from screaming in frustration. "Please, Naruto, please be safe," he whispered as tears of frustration slowly spilled from his eyes.

Naruto

Naruto awoke and slowly opened his eyes. Surprisingly, he found his surroundings were still steeped in darkness. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, he realized that he was moving; the "ground" below him was rocking around and clearly in motion. When he was able to see somewhat clearly, he saw that he was in a covered wagon of some sort.

Looking to his side, he saw that Hinata was still asleep beside him. Between the bouncing and rocking of the wagon and the heat, which he had quickly realized was much higher than he was used to upon awakening, he was surprised she was still asleep. He reached over and tried to shake her awake. When she didn't react at all, he guessed that her sleep was jutsu-induced somehow. _"We've been kidnapped,"_ he thought to himself. After a brief moment of panic, and some deep breaths to calm himself, Naruto started to think furiously. _"Okay, we've been kidnapped. What are you going to do about it, Naruto?"_ At that thought, he chuckled wryly to himself. _"What _can_ I do? I'm just a kid, after all."_ Then, the blond had another thought. _"Wait a minute. I took Hinata into my home, then we both ran away from the village to get away from her clan...all that just to get kidnapped by someone out in the middle of nowhere? Oh, HELL NO!"_ As he thought about this, his anger began to rise, soon coming to a boil.

As the blond became more and more angry at the thought of him and Hinata being taken like this, a sudden spike of chakra rose from within him, cloaking him in a red, fox-like shroud with a single tail. He let out a loud roar, which startled the oxen pulling the wagon into running, which, in turn, caused the wagon to jolt into rapid movement. The sudden acceleration sent Naruto flying out the back of the wagon, where he landed and rolled across the ground. In his rage, he only spared a split second to notice that he was rolling across sand. In the next instant, he was running toward the wagon, determined not to let Hinata get taken away from him.

Naruto caught up with the wagon a few minutes later when the driver got the oxen back under control. By the time he got there, four men were looking into the back of the now stationary wagon. He heard one of them saying, "At least we still have her. She's the one that's really worth the big money. The other one wasn't worth much anyway."

"_So, they mean to sell her, do they? I think not!"_ he thought to himself. Letting out another roar, he ran full tilt at the four men. They turned and, upon seeing him coming, attempted to get out of his way. It was too late for one of them, however, as Naruto's first attack, a swipe of his now claw-like hand, hit the man across the neck, killing him instantly.

The three remaining men took up defensive positions a short distance from Naruto, not sure exactly what to expect. Growling, the red-cloaked boy ran at them with murder in his eyes, which were now red and had slitted pupils like those of a fox. The three men pulled kunai and prepared to defend themselves. Naruto's next attack chopped off the hand of one of the men. The other two came at him from behind while he was still focusing on that one, but their attacks were stopped by the red shroud. Naruto turned on the two men behind him, rage coming off him in waves, and attacked them with one hand each. Both attacks landed, decapitating the two men in an instant. The remaining man tried to attack Naruto from behind, but the tail of his cloak moved lightning quick and impaled the man through the chest, killing him as well.

By this time, Naruto was covered in blood, none of it his own. As he turned toward the wagon, breathing hard, he saw Hinata stepping down from the wagon and rubbing her eyes. Upon seeing Naruto, Hinata gasped, then ran toward him to make sure he was okay. Naruto, upon seeing that Hinata was awake and all right, smiled slightly, let out a sigh, and fell to the ground, unconscious; the red chakra seeped back into his body moments later.

When Naruto fell to the ground, Hinata stopped a brief moment, then ran as quickly as she could to him, deeply frightened that he might be dead. When she got there, she found that the blood on him was not his own, which calmed her down a lot. After taking a few deep breaths, Hinata lifted Naruto's body and managed to get it back to the wagon. She knew that leaving him out there in the extreme heat of the day would do him no good, so she was determined to get him into the shade. That done, Hinata rooted around in the wagon and found all of their possessions tucked away in a back corner. She also found several bags of feed for the oxen and a good amount of supplies, rations, weapons, and so on. _"I'm not sure what happened,"_ she thought to herself, _"but it might end up being a good thing."_

xxxxxx

While Hinata was taking stock of the wagon's contents, Naruto found himself in his mindscape. Falling to his knees, he cried out, "What have I done?!" It had taken a few moments for him to realize he had just slaughtered four men, but, once he did, he had sunk into a despair unlike any he'd ever felt before. How could anyone ever trust him now? How could anyone ever love him? How could anyone even stand to be around him?

A booming voice sounded throughout Naruto's mindscape. **"I'm so proud of you!"** it said. **"You have finally shown that you are willing to do what it takes."**

Naruto looked up and saw a huge, grinning red fox looking at him through a set of bars. "Who are you?" he asked.

The fox raised an eyebrow, seemingly curious or surprised. **"Who am I? I'm the Nine-Tailed Fox of course!"** it responded, its voice minimally annoyed.

"That can't be!" Naruto responded. "The Fourth Hokage killed the Nine-Tailed Fox! Now tell me the truth, who are you?"

The fox laughed loudly. **"Killed the Nine-Tailed Fox?"** it asked. _**"That**_** can't be! You can't kill any of the tailed beasts, I'd have thought even you would know that. No, he didn't kill me, he just sealed me in you. In any case, you know it now, and, whether you want to believe it or not, I **_**am**_** the Nine-Tailed Fox!"**

Naruto shrugged. "Whatever, I don't really care," he said, turning his back on the fox. "It's not like anyone could ever love me now...I'm a killer."

From behind him, the fox responded, **"I can."** Naruto turned to the fox, his eyes distrusting. **"I'm a killer, too, after all. Why would I hold that against you?"**

Naruto thought about that a moment, then nodded. "That's true, I suppose," he said. "Still, even then, I'll spend the rest of my life alone now. I'm not worthy of being loved."

Grinning widely, the fox told him, **"If they won't love you, why should you care about them? Screw them all!"**

Naruto shook his head. "No, I won't hurt them. I'll just live alone." His voice was depressed, making it obvious the boy was on the verge of utter despair.

The fox growled. **"Why would you forgive them? They hate you and look down on you, why not take your revenge?!"** it asked.

Naruto was about to respond when he suddenly felt himself being pushed from his mindscape. Within moments, he was awake, leaving behind the fox, who was satisfied in the knowledge that it had given the blond some food for thought, if nothing else.

xxxxxx

Naruto opened his eyes and found, to his surprise, he was no longer on the ground outside. Instead, he was apparently back in the bed of the wagon. Looking around, he found Hinata sitting nearby, going through a pile of something; from where he was, he couldn't tell exactly what she was doing.

Hinata heard Naruto shifting around and turned to him with a smile. "Oh, Naruto!" she greeted, coming over by him. "I'm glad you're awake. Are you all right?"

Naruto pulled away from Hinata a little and sat up. "I'm fine," he said slowly.

Hinata breathed a sigh of relief. "When I saw you covered in all that blood," she said, "I was so scared."

Naruto looked at her, his eyes hurt. "Of course you were scared," he answered, his voice emotionless, "I'm a killer, you had every reason to be afraid of me." That said, he turned away from her, not wanting her to see the pain she had caused him with her words.

Hinata gasped, realizing what he thought she meant. Coming to him, she put her arms around him from behind and said softly, "No, Naruto, I'm not afraid _of_ you, I was scared _for_ you! I thought you were hurt...or worse. I was terrified of losing you!"

Naruto looked at Hinata over his shoulder. "But how could that be?" he asked. "I'm a killer! I slaughtered those four men. I tore them apart and killed them. I did that, Hinata. How can you care for me after that?"

Hinata smiled softly at the blond, realizing at that moment how deeply worried he was that he would lose her. "Naruto," she began slowly, choosing her words carefully, "why did you kill them?"

Naruto thought about that a moment, then answered, "I killed them to protect you. They were going to sell you, and I wasn't going to let that happen to you."

Hinata smiled. "Yet again, you've saved me," she said. She leaned in and kissed him softly on his cheek. "My hero."

Naruto finally smiled. Turning around, he slowly embraced Hinata, who wrapped her arms around Naruto and rubbed his back gently. Naruto finally let out his pain, crying quietly on Hinata's shoulder. Hinata held him close, making soothing sounds in his ear. Soon, the blond had cried himself out, and the two simply sat together, wrapped in one another's arms as they reaffirmed their affection for one another.

After a while, the two separated. Naruto looked around the wagon again and saw what Hinata had discovered a while ago: the wagon was filled with provisions both for the people who had been driving the wagon and for the team of oxen who were pulling it. Hinata said, "I've been going through all this stuff, and there's enough here for us to live on for quite some time. There's even plenty of kunai, shuriken, ninja wire, and all kinds of tags. I was separating the tags into different kinds when you woke up."

Naruto saw the piles of tags that she indicated. There was a nice pile of sealing tags, a smaller pile of chakra-sealing tags, and a small mountain of explosive tags. There were also some tags that hadn't been marked yet and even a small handful of decoy tags. Beyond those were huge piles of kunai and shuriken, as Hinata had stated.

The two made their way over to where Hinata had been working. Naruto grabbed a stack of unsorted tags of his own, and they continued to separate them. A companionable silence fell over them for a short while. As Naruto placed a chakra-sealing tag on its designated pile, he began to think about what he had seen when he was unconscious. He kept sorting tags, but only half of his attention was focused on what he was doing. The rest of it was mulling over what he should do about what he had learned. Apparently he had the Nine-Tailed Fox sealed in him. Of course, knowing this explained a lot about how people had treated him back in the village. It also gave him an entirely new problem, though: he had to tell Hinata, and he knew it. It wouldn't be right to keep a secret like this from her, not if she was going to be alone with him in the middle of nowhere for a long time, which she likely was. Sighing, he told himself, _"The longer I wait, the harder it will be to tell her. I might as well just get it over with and tell her tonight."_ That decided, he returned his focus to the tags. Hinata noticed he had seemed distracted for a while, but she decided not to bring it up, knowing Naruto would tell her when he was ready.

By the time they had finished sorting the tags into their separate piles, it was nearing dusk. Naruto had spent that entire time mulling over what he was going to tell Hinata, and it had left his nerves frayed and him in a somewhat touchy mood. Rooting around in the wagon, they found enough tinder and wood to build a small fire, which they did. Then, they dug around in the pile of food in the wagon. Unfortunately, there wasn't much there that was actually usable. A majority of the food was entirely spoiled in one way or another. Once they'd disposed of that, they found they had, at most, a week's provisions. Naruto growled in frustration; he wasn't sure what he was frustrated about, exactly, but this situation wasn't doing his already frazzled nerves any good at all.

Sighing, Naruto rooted around until he found the box he had brought with him from his apartment and left. An hour later, he returned, seeming much calmer. Hinata looked at him curiously, and he explained, "I was setting some traps. I found some tracks out there that look like they were left by relatively small animals, and I think I'll be able to catch some for us. It might not be much, but every little bit helps, right?"

Hinata smiled. "Yes, that's very true," she said. After a moment, she mused, "I wonder what kind of animals live out here."

"Lizards, I think," Naruto told her. "At least, that's what the tracks looked like."

Hinata giggled. "I've never had lizard before," she said with a small smile.

Naruto chuckled. "I haven't, either," he told her. "Well, I'm always open to new things, and I'm sure you'll find some way to make it tasty."

Hinata blushed a bit and shook her head. "I appreciate the vote of confidence," she said, "but I don't know how much I'll be able to do with what we have here. These guys apparently didn't think spices and such for cooking were worth packing, so I don't have much of anything."

Naruto sighed. "And I doubt we have much water, either, do we?" he asked.

Hinata shook her head again. "There's enough for us and the oxen for maybe two weeks at the most," she said. "And what we have isn't exactly the freshest, either."

Naruto shook his head and grumbled, "Everything was going so well, now look at us, stuck in the desert with just a wagon, some oxen, and enough food and water to live for maybe two weeks at the most!"

Hinata reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, at least we're still together," she said.

Naruto sighed. "Yeah, that's true...Hinata, there's something I have to tell you," he said, gently pulling her around in front of him so he could look into her eyes. Hinata gave him a comforting smile and nodded. "When I was unconscious...I'm not sure how, but I went into my own mind. It was like I was in a boiler room or something. My...mindscape, I guess you could call it." Hinata nodded again, her eyes curious. "The thing is...I wasn't alone. There was a huge cage in there. And in that cage...I saw the Nine-Tailed Fox. He told me the Fourth Hokage didn't kill him, saying it's impossible to kill a tailed beast, and that the Fourth sealed him into me. Apparently, me being born the day the Fox attacked was no coincidence."

Hinata thought about what she'd been told, then activated her Byakugan. She had to see something. With her Byakugan on, she saw that Naruto had two separate chakras within his body. The normal, bright blue chakra that everyone she knew had...and a deep red chakra that seemed to carry an evil presence with it. _"That must be the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra,"_ she thought to herself. To Naruto, she said, "I guess that's why everyone back in the village ignored you, huh?" Naruto nodded, waiting to see how she'd take this. Hinata smiled. "I saw you with my Byakugan. Your body has two chakras. The fox's chakra is within you, that's true, but it's not your own. Your own chakra is the same as mine. That tells me that you're not the fox, no matter what the villagers think." That said, she came close to Naruto and wrapped her arms around him. Naruto hugged her back, letting go of the breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

"Thank you, Hinata," he said. Taking a deep breath, he told her, "I'm so glad you accepted me...I was really afraid you wouldn't."

Hinata pulled back a little and looked up at Naruto. "How could I ever reject my hero?" she asked with a playful smile.

Naruto couldn't help but smile back. "Thank you," he told her again.

By this time, it was getting dark. Hinata climbed into the wagon and gathered some meat for their supper. She proceeded to cook it over the fire they'd made earlier, and the two ate quietly. Naruto was too busy watching Hinata and thinking about everything that had happened that day to talk, and Hinata was just enjoying the comfortable silence between them. Smiling slightly, Hinata thought, _"It's been a crazy few weeks, what with Naruto and me leaving the village and living out here and all, but I'm still glad he and I met."_

Naruto noticed the smile on Hinata's face and asked quietly, "What are you thinking?" Hinata told him what she'd been thinking, and he answered, "Yeah, me, too."

The two finished eating, then they lay down beside one another on the sand, looking up at the rapidly darkening sky. Hinata moved to Naruto and rested her head on his shoulder. The two smiled, glad for the companionship, and watched the stars begin to come out. "It's nice out here," Hinata commented, her voice sleepy. "It's peaceful."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah...I'd always thought the desert would be...different from this, somehow. It's a little lonely, but it's mostly just peaceful out here. It really is...nice," he said with a chuckle.

Hinata giggled sleepily, Naruto wrapped one arm around the girl, and, soon enough, both were asleep, laying under the starry sky.

xxxxxx

The following day, Naruto and Hinata finished taking stock of the contents of the wagon. Hinata found a map and compass somewhere, and Naruto managed to find some clothes that would fit them both. Their own clothes had apparently been abandoned by their captors, so they were both in need of those. Naruto set aside his orange jumpsuit and dressed in the somewhat drab clothes he'd found. They weren't exactly attractive, but they were fairly comfortable and clean. Hinata found her clothes a bit on the large side, but she didn't mind that. Her own clothes were baggy as well, so she was used to it. She found the outfit she was wearing a bit on the scratchy side, but she figured she could endure that.

Once they were dressed, the two found some ration bars for their breakfast and fed the oxen. Then, Hinata pulled out the map and compass she had found and tried to figure out where they were. Unfortunately, the desert all looked the same in every direction. She was able to figure out they had been heading north originally based on the tracks of the wagon. Beyond that, however, she found they were just as lost now as they had been before she found the map.

Thinking over their situation, she decided that heading east wouldn't do them much good, since that would just take them back toward the Land of Fire. Since south would only lead them to the ocean, and north would lead them to the Land of Earth, she quickly decided that their most logical course of action would be to go west. Hopefully, that would lead them to the Village Hidden in the Sand. There, at least they could be sure to find supplies. Maybe they could even safely live there for a while. The Land of Wind and the Land of Fire were allies, after all. She had heard rumors some time back that there was a monster living there, but she didn't put much stock in that; rumors were almost always exaggerated, she told herself.

"_Well, even if we're not due east of the village, at least we should come close enough to it to be able to see it," _she thought to herself. _"I just hope we're not _west_ of the village...that would be a disaster!"_ Turning to Naruto, she told him, "I think we should head west. There's a village in the desert, the Village Hidden in the Sand, and I'm pretty sure we're east of there. I'm sure we can get supplies there at the very least...and maybe we can even live there safely for a while. I don't know about you, but I'd rather not spend any more time out here in the wilderness than necessary."

Naruto nodded. "That's true enough. All right, Hinata, let's get going. Which way is west?" Hinata pointed, and the two climbed onto the driver's seat of the wagon. It took some doing, but they eventually managed to get the oxen moving and heading in the right direction.

Hiruzen

As Naruto and Hinata were heading off to the west in the desert, Hiruzen was reading over a report he'd gotten from one of his ANBU squads. They had just returned from a mission. On their way back to the village, they had felt a spike of chakra and gone to check it out. What they had found wasn't exactly comforting, to say the least. They found the remains of a campsite, where, they guessed, two people had been camping for some time. Before they'd gotten there, however, a group of at least three other people had run roughshod over the site, and now it was abandoned.

The spike of chakra they described sounded like a mid-level genjutsu, and, if he had to guess, the campsite had probably been Naruto and Hinata's. _"I have to tell Jiraiya about this...as much as I hate to,"_ he thought to himself with a sigh.

Pulling out a quill pen and a scroll, he wrote a brief message to Jiraiya and summoned a monkey to deliver it. Handing the monkey the scroll, he told him to deliver it to Jiraiya. The monkey saluted him and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Sighing, Hiruzen thought to himself, _"Naruto, you better be safe out there. I could never face your father if you died."_

Naruto

It had taken them several hours, but Naruto and Hinata had managed to find their way to the Hidden Sand Village by mid-afternoon. They managed to get through the main gate by telling the guards their parents were traveling merchants who had been attacked and killed in the desert, and they had managed to direct their team of oxen there. Hinata had pretended to be blind to avoid calling attention to her eyes. To her surprise, it worked.

As the two were making their way out of the stables where they'd been directed to leave their oxen, they heard voices screaming and saw children running away from something they couldn't see. Curious, the two made their way toward the source of the children's fear. Soon, they found what had so scared them. It was a boy. He looked to be their own age, and neither of them could see anything all that frightening about him at first. He had pale blue eyes, the reddest hair either of them had ever seen, and black rings around his eyes that made him look like he hadn't slept in days. On his forehead, the kanji for "love" was written in red. It took them both a moment to realize it wasn't writing, it was actually a scar. On his back, the boy carried what looked like a gourd of some kind. Then the two saw his eyes. There was madness in those eyes. This boy, they realized, wasn't like most other children they knew. He wasn't a child...he was...something else. Then they saw something else. Those pale eyes were filled with the pain of loneliness and betrayal. It was then that the two lonely children realized something. This boy _was_ like them, for the pain they saw in his eyes was the exact same pain they knew was in their _own_ eyes. Who was this boy, they wondered...and would their eyes one day look like his?


	5. Sandy Adventures

Chapter 5

Approaching the redhead who was so frightening everyone around them, Naruto and Hinata gave the boy a kind smile. "Hi there," Naruto greeted pleasantly.

The redhead finally focused his attention on the two people who were approaching him with no fear. "Are you talking to...me?" he asked uncertainly. Naruto nodded. "Who...are you?"

"I'm Naruto, and this is my friend, Hinata," Naruto replied. "And you?"

"My name is Gaara," the boy replied. "Why aren't you afraid of me? You do know who I am, don't you?" he asked after a moment when the two showed no sign of recognizing his name.

"Never heard of you," Naruto replied, somewhat blithely.

Gaara looked shocked by this, which prompted Hinata to ask, "Why should we have heard of you?"

"I'm the monster of the sand," Gaara said back, his voice sad. It had taken years, but after being told that he _was_ a monster for so many years, he had eventually come to believe it.

Naruto recognized that thought, that feeling, all too well. "No you aren't," he said back, his voice showing no doubt whatsoever.

Gaara looked up in shock. "What do you mean? Of course I am. Everyone in town is afraid of me, and I've even killed people before. How could I not be the monster?" he asked.

"I know you aren't because I'm just like you," Naruto replied. "Everyone in my village ignored me and treated me like some kind of monster, but then I found out I'm not a monster, I just have one sealed inside me. I bet you do, too."

Gaara pondered this. _"A monster sealed inside me?"_ he thought. _"But then that would mean...Mother...is a monster? Could it be that that isn't my mother but...the monster everyone believes I am? This boy is saying he has one in him, too...maybe it's true."_ Turning his attention to the raven-haired girl who had only spoken once so far, he asked her, "You knew of this, and you're still with him?"

Hinata smiled and linked her hand with Naruto's. "He's my hero. I don't care what he has inside him, I'll always be at his side," she said back happily.

Gaara was surprised. "He's a monster, a killer, and you still love him?" he asked, his voice betraying how mystified he was. Hinata nodded. "But...why?"

Hinata sighed. "It doesn't matter to me what's inside him or that he's killed. I know who he is and why he does the things he does, and that's what matters to me. He would only kill if he had to to defend something precious to him, and the creature inside him doesn't change the fact that he's still Naruto Uzumaki, my hero," she said quietly but confidently.

"So...you mean I'm not doomed to be alone forever?" Gaara asked back.

Hinata smiled. "I'm sure you'll find someone someday, Gaara. Just don't let yourself turn to hate and anger. Be the best person you can be, and I'm sure someone will come to love you someday," she told him.

Gaara pondered this for a while, eventually deciding to simply tuck it away for the time being. "You said you're not from here," he said. "What are you two doing here, then?"

It took Naruto and Hinata the better part of an hour to explain what had happened to them that brought them to the Hidden Sand Village. They didn't tell him everything, leaving out some of the stuff about the Hyuga clan, since they didn't want to tell this boy exactly who Hinata was just yet, and not going into too much detail about their kidnapping, but other than that, they were as upfront and honest as they could be. "That's when we came here," Hinata finished. "We need to get some supplies for ourselves and our oxen so that we can continue our journey."

Gaara thought about all he'd been told. "I see," he said softly. "Well, if you'll come with me, I'll help you find the supplies you need. The villagers might be afraid of me, but that hasn't stopped me from learning my way around this place." Naruto and Hinata smiled and nodded, then followed as Gaara turned and headed toward the main street of the village.

Jiraiya

For the third time in the last month, Jiraiya found himself pacing back and forth in his hotel room anxiously. He had received another message from his old sensei concerning his godson and the young girl traveling with him. This one was by far the most distressing of the messages he'd been sent. "Foundling's campsite found trampled. Foundling and baggage missing; current location and condition unknown." That's all the message said, but Jiraiya was fully able to read between the lines. Naruto and his companion had been kidnapped!

"Oh, Minato, Kushina, what am I supposed to do?!" he asked aloud. "I know you two would kill me if anything happened to that brat, but how can I help him now?" Resuming his pacing, the Toad Sage got a determined look on his face. "Okay, it's been a month now since he left. If I'm not finished with my mission and with those two in a year, I'll hand in my headband," he said to himself.

That determined, he set himself to glaring at every single detail of his mission schedule. He eventually noticed that there was a single opportunity to speed things up so that they would fit the new timetable he had set for himself. It was risky, and probably stupid, but if it meant he was with those two sooner, he didn't care what he had to put on the line to do it.

"_There,"_ he thought to himself. _"If I can just stick to that, I'll be with them in a year, maybe even less. It's still not perfect, but it'll just have to do."_ That decision made, the man flopped onto his hotel bed and closed his eyes. It wasn't late, it was in fact early afternoon, but he was thoroughly exhausted. As he drifted toward sleep, his last thought was, _"Please, just be safe until I can get there, Naruto."_ The man's dreams were haunted by the angry eyes of Naruto's parents.

Hiruzen

The Third Hokage sighed deeply. He had just received a scroll stating that Naruto and Hinata had been spotted entering the Hidden Sand Village. One of his spies there had been on duty at the village's main gate when the two used their less than plausible story to get in, which is why they had received so little trouble. It was a huge relief to know they were okay, but this other information was rather odd. The two were driving an ox cart? That didn't seem to make much sense. Where in the world would they get an ox cart? Yet the man was strangely certain the two were who he said they were. He described Hinata's eyes and Naruto's hair and whiskers so well, the Hokage had to agree, this was them. Yet...an ox cart? Where in the world did they get that?

Still, it was a relief to know they were safe and apparently free. The man said it was just the two of them who entered the Sand Village, so obviously they had either escaped their captors or been set free. The former left the Hokage wondering how, while the latter seemed implausible, if not downright impossible. He was fairly sure the two had been captured as part of someone's attempt to profit from Hinata's Byakugan, so he found it rather unlikely that she in particular would simply be let go. And the cart was still baffling. All the same, he supposed he should just be glad they were alive and safe and that their situation had seemingly improved.

Sighing again, he picked up a brush and wrote a new message to his old student. Summoning a small monkey to deliver it, he handed the creature the scroll, then went back to his paperwork, all the while trying to figure out where Naruto or Hinata would have gotten a freaking ox cart.

Jiraiya

Jiraiya looked up in surprise when a poof of smoke filled his room. When it cleared, there was a monkey there with a scroll in its hand, which it handed to Jiraiya before vanishing in a second cloud of smoke. Jiraiya opened it and read, "Foundling has landed in a sandy nest. Was seen with an ox cart. Shadow's desert eyes report Foundling is well."

Jiraiya read the message three times rapidly. The first and third lines made perfect sense to him: Naruto had been seen by a spy in the Sand Village, who reported that Naruto was doing well. That second line, though. An ox cart? After thinking about that for a few minutes, Jiraiya came to the conclusion that _had_ to be code for something. After all, where in the world would two eight-year-olds get an ox cart? But if that was a code for something, what in the world was it? None of the spymaster's knowledge of codes or cyphers could make any sense out of that one. Eventually, Jiraiya had no choice but to accept that, for whatever reason, his sensei had written a single line that wasn't coded. But that brought him back to his original question. Where in the world would they get an ox cart?

"Naruto, what in the world have you gotten yourself into out there?" he asked the wall. "I just hope you know what you're doing. Please, be safe, Naruto. Please."

Naruto

Naruto smiled in slight surprise as he realized that the cost of all the supplies he'd purchased hadn't even made a significant dent in his funds. He smiled as he thought of the box he'd kept in his closet all these years. _"It's a good thing I kept that,"_ he thought to himself as he paid for the last few things he and Hinata were going to need.

Turning to Gaara, Naruto said, "Thank you, Gaara, you've been most helpful. Now that we have our supplies, though, Hinata and I really should move on."

Gaara looked stricken at this. Turning to look at the sky, the redhead said, "Nonsense! You two will both join me and my family for dinner and spend the night at my home. Tomorrow you can make your plans and decide when to leave." Naruto was about to protest, but Gaara interrupted him, saying, "I don't know how many nights you've spent in the desert, but it can be absolutely frigid sometimes. It's going to be cold tonight, and I'm sure you'd be warmer and more comfortable in one of the rooms at my home than out there on the sand." The boy didn't _know_ if it was going to be cold or not, but he was desperate to keep Naruto and Hinata from leaving just yet.

Naruto turned to Hinata. "He's got a point," he said.

Hinata nodded. "Yeah, and it would feel _so_ good to sleep in a bed again," she said. Then, blushing slightly, she added, "Even if it is only for one night."

Naruto chuckled. Hinata was right. It _would_ feel good to sleep in a bed again. He hadn't thought about it consciously until that moment, but camping out for a month straight could really make you miss the finer things of home. Turning his attention back to Gaara, Naruto smiled and said, "All right, Gaara. We thank you for your hospitality, and we'll be glad to stay with you for tonight. We really should move on tomorrow, though."

Gaara looked a bit depressed that they would be moving on so soon, but he wasn't going to complain about them staying for now at least. In truth, given how his father had been acting toward _him_ of late, Gaara had to admit that the Sand Village was probably not the safest place for Naruto to be, given his burden. "Come with me," he said simply, not wanting to show how anxious he was. With that, he turned and led his two...companions? Friends? He wasn't sure what they were yet, but that's exactly why he didn't want them to leave yet. Regardless, he led them to his home.

Naruto was impressed by the sheer size of Gaara's home. It was obviously quite expensive, and it was the largest home by far they had seen since arriving in the Sand Village. "Nice place," he said, his voice full of awe.

"I am happy you approve," Gaara said sincerely. "My siblings should be here, so we can all have dinner shortly."

Hinata was taken a little aback by this. "You have siblings? You never mentioned them before," she said.

"Yes," Gaara said back. "I am the youngest of three. My older brother, Kankuro, and my sister, Temari, should be here. Come in."

Naruto and Hinata followed him into his home. Gaara left them to their own devices to take off their shoes and such and went on a search for his siblings. After removing their shoes, Naruto and Hinata looked around the living room where they found themselves. There was a long couch along one wall, and a large rug took up most of the floor space, while the center of the rug was dominated by a coffee table. On the table, they saw several books were laying about haphazardly. Naruto recognized one of them as the book he was reading the night he met Hinata. Hinata recognized a few as a series of which she herself was a fan. Then both of them saw an orange book laying in the midst of all the others. It wasn't familiar to either of them, but the orange cover made it very noticeable to both of them.

Hinata was considering picking up the odd orange book when Gaara returned, two people who must be his siblings in tow. Temari had blond hair tied up in four ponytails, a style which reminded Hinata of an odd version of the hairstyle favored by the Nara men, and she was carrying a fan with her. Kankuro was manipulating a small puppet as he walked around, making it do a rather silly dance, and was wearing a hooded outfit that made his head slightly resemble that of a cat. It was Temari who spoke first. "So, who are your visitors, Gaara?" she asked.

"This is Naruto and Hinata," Gaara answered, indicating each as he said their names. "They're not from here, and they needed some help getting supplies so they could continue their journey. I invited them to join us for the night so they could more easily plan their next move."

Temari and Kankuro both looked surprised at how...normal Gaara was acting. Temari turned her focus on Hinata. "Would you mind helping me in the kitchen?" she asked.

Hinata smiled. "Not at all, I'd be glad to," she answered. The two girls disappeared into the kitchen to get dinner started.

"I will get your room prepared for you," Gaara said before walking up the stairs.

Kankuro turned to Naruto. "You do know...what he is, don't you?" he asked, indicating where Gaara had gone. Naruto turned a blank look on Kankuro. "I mean...you do know he's a jinchuriki, right?"

Naruto snorted. "You mean that he has a monster inside him?" Kankuro nodded furiously. "Yeah, I know," he said simply.

"And you're not afraid of him?" Kankuro asked in shock.

"Why in the world would I be afraid of him?" Naruto asked. Then he added, "After all, I have a monster in me, too. And I'm pretty sure mine is bigger."

Kankuro was surprised. "You're...like Gaara?" he asked.

"Well, if you mean that we both have monsters sealed within us, yeah. If you mean that we've both spent most of our lives alone, yeah. If you mean that we're both homicidal maniacs, no. And I don't think Gaara will be, either, after this," Naruto said calmly. Gaara had told him and Hinata about the many times he'd had to kill to survive over the last few years. It was a little scary, but also very sad.

"I did notice he seemed...different," Kankuro said.

Naruto sighed. "Just treat him like any other sibling would want to be treated, and I really don't think you'll have to worry about him," he said.

Meanwhile, Temari had been asking Hinata much the same thing. "Yeah, I know about Gaara's...burden, and I know how he's had to kill so many times. He told us while we were walking around the village together earlier," Hinata said calmly.

Temari was surprised. Gaara had told them? They hadn't _seen_ it? "And you're not...afraid of him?"

Hinata laughed. "Of course not. Naruto has a monster sealed inside him, too, and I'm not afraid of him, so why would I be afraid of Gaara?"

Temari was shocked now. "Naruto is a jinchuriki?" she asked. Hinata nodded. She had heard the term once before, and upon hearing about Naruto's beast, she had put two and two together. "How can you be so calm around him?"

"He'd never hurt me," Hinata said. "In fact, he's already killed to protect me. It was...actually really scary seeing the aftermath of what he did, but I know he did it for me, so I can't be afraid of him for doing it." Hinata finally allowed the true horror of having witnessed..._that_ sink in and shivered slightly.

Temari wrapped an arm around the smaller girl's shoulders and gave her a kind smile. "I know how you feel. I still remember the first time I saw what Gaara can do...it's impressive, but scary," she said. "If he can just harness that power and be convinced to use it to protect the village, I don't think any of us will ever need to fear anything again."

Hinata smiled. "That's exactly how I feel about Naruto. The thing is, he's already determined to be Hokage and uses his power to protect the village. I just hope one day the village will see him as I do, as our hero," she said softly.

Temari smiled. "Wow. You've really got it bad for that goofy kid, huh?" she said, teasingly.

Hinata blushed scarlet. "What do you mean?" she asked, trying to feign ignorance. When Temari just gave her a knowing look, Hinata sighed. "Yeah, I do. How could I not, though? He's already saved me from becoming a prisoner of my clan and from being kidnapped, and I haven't even known him two months yet. He's my hero, and I'm the luckiest girl in the world just knowing him."

Temari smiled again. "I'm happy for you, Hinata. I just hope Gaara finds someone like you someday."

Hinata gave a slight giggle. "If he follows Naruto's example, I'm sure he will. Naruto found me, after all," she said back with a happy glint in her eye. "And I'm sure whoever it is, she'll be just as lucky to have Gaara as I am to have Naruto," Hinata added with a smile.

Temari sighed. "I hope you're right, Hinata," she said. That said, the two girls turned their focus to making dinner for everyone.

xxxxxx

The next morning, Naruto and Hinata were preparing to leave the Sand Village with their cart and oxen. They had enjoyed their evening with Gaara and his siblings, but they realized that they had to move on. "All right," Naruto said once their team was hitched back up. "Are you ready, Hinata?"

Hinata nodded, a blank look on her face. She was already back in her "blind girl" persona they had used to get into the village. They had decided to use the same cover story to get back out so as to avoid raising suspicion.

Just before they could set their team onto the road that led out of the village, they got a surprise. Gaara came running up to them. "Oh, hey, Gaara," Naruto said pleasantly. "What's up?"

"Take me with you," Gaara demanded.


	6. Desert Peace

Chapter 6

Naruto gasped in surprise. That was the absolute _last_ thing he had expected Gaara to say. Scrambling for an excuse, Naruto glanced back and forth between Gaara and Hinata. "We...we can't take you with us, Gaara," he said after a moment. "We could start a war if we did that, especially with you being a jinchuriki and the son of the Kazekage and all that. It's just...not something we can do."

Gaara considered this, then shook his head. "My father has spent the last two years trying constantly to kill me. My own siblings are afraid of me, and the villagers all hate me. This isn't a home to me. I have to take the chance and go, now. Please...take me with you," he said, almost begging now.

To the immense surprise of both Naruto and Gaara, Temari and Kankuro suddenly revealed themselves at that moment. They had been hiding nearby where neither Gaara, Naruto, nor Hinata had noticed them. Hinata briefly kicked herself for having dropped her guard, then decided she could afford to forgive herself for it this once; they were in a relatively safe place, after all. Besides, Temari and Kankuro had made it clear they had no desire to do harm to either her or Naruto.

It was Temari who spoke up first. "Take him with you, Naruto," she said simply. Naruto looked at her in shock. Turning to Gaara, she said, "Kankuro and I love you, Gaara. We only want what's best for you, and we talked it over last night and we believe that spending some time away from the village is exactly what you need."

Naruto took a deep breath. "Temari, you have to understand, there are many powerful shinobi who are after Hinata and me. I'm not sure exactly what they want, but all of them want either her or me, either dead or enslaved. If Gaara comes with us, he'll be in grave danger every step of the way. That can't be better than being here," he said after thinking a moment.

Temari chuckled and shook her head. It was Kankuro who spoke up this time. "What Gaara said is true, for the most part. Father has been trying to kill him for some time now. He's been in grave danger every moment of every day for over two years. Going with you will probably put him in less danger than if he were here, actually. And besides, as long as you're in the desert, having Gaara with you will make you darn near invincible with his control over the sand."

Naruto considered this carefully. They did have a point. Having someone as powerful as Gaara, and a jinchuriki to boot, along for the ride would be a definite advantage. Especially with all the people out there who were after them, actively or otherwise, there was definite strength in numbers. Still...they could cause some kind of war between the Leaf and Sand if they took Gaara with them without the approval of the Kazekage.

Turning to Temari, Naruto opened his mouth to say something, but Hinata beat him to it. "You do have a point, but still, we can't risk the Leaf and Sand going to war over something like this. It just wouldn't be wise, and I really don't think either Naruto or I could live with ourselves if our villages went to war over something we did. If the Kazekage gave his approval, it would be a different story, but he hasn't done that so far as we know," she said. Naruto looked at her in surprise; it was the most he'd ever heard Hinata say all at once.

Temari and Kankuro looked at one another and nodded. Kankuro came toward Naruto and Hinata and handed Naruto a small scroll. When Naruto opened it, he found it contained a letter. It read, "If anyone ever comes along who is willing to take Gaara away from the Village Hidden in the Sand, give this to them. To you, reader, I will only say this: if you cannot instill within Gaara a will to protect the people and shinobi of the Sand Village, please, do everyone a favor and kill him. If you are unable to do this, at least keep him away from the Sand Village for the rest of his life." It was signed by the Kazekage.

Naruto glared at the letter, then handed it to Hinata. She read it slowly, twice over, then gave it a nasty look before pulling out a match and setting the scroll on fire. "We would never do that," she said simply. "The one favor we will ever do your Kazekage is to never tell Gaara what that said. That said, though, the contents of that do change things. We will take Gaara with us for now." Naruto nodded his agreement at her words.

Gaara stared at them. His eyes filled with tears, which he blinked furiously to prevent from spilling over. "Thank you both so much," he said after a moment. The tears began to flow from his eyes despite his best efforts to prevent them. He climbed on the ox cart.

Naruto asked, "Don't you have anything you want to bring with you, Gaara?"

The redhead patted the gourd on his back. "I have my sand, and there's nothing else in this village I would want to carry around with me."

Hinata climbed down from the cart and pulled Temari and Kankuro aside. "Don't ever forget him," she said. They nodded. "We'll do our best to make him into the shinobi he should be. If at all possible, he will be back to you in about a year. At worst, we'll do our best to have him back to you in time to become a full-fledged shinobi in a few years. Since you two are probably the only ones in the village who aren't afraid of him, you'll have to be his teammates, so...please, wait for him."

Temari nodded seriously, tears in her own eyes. "We will, I promise you, Hinata. We'd wait for him forever if we had to. He is our brother after all," she said. Kankuro just nodded to show he agreed. Temari took a deep, slightly shaky breath, then asked, "Can I say goodbye to him?"

Hinata smiled. "We wouldn't have it any other way!" she said happily.

Hinata climbed back into the ox cart as Temari and Kankuro came forward and took one of Gaara's hands each. Temari gave Gaara the best smile she could despite the tears in her eyes. "We'll be here when you get back, little brother," she said, her voice choked. "Don't forget us."

Kankuro tried to say something, couldn't at first, then cleared his throat and said, "We'll miss you, Gaara."

Gaara gave his siblings one of the first sincere smiles he had turned on anyone in his home for well over a year, squeezed their hands in his small ones, and said, "I will come back when I am ready. Be patient, wait for me, and one day I will return."

Temari and Kankuro both smiled sincerely at their brother. They were happy for him. All the same, they both had tears in their eyes. They knew they were going to miss their little brother. Temari wrapped an arm around Kankuro as they watched Naruto and Hinata aim their oxen back onto the road that led out of the Sand Village and said softly, "This is for the best. He needs this. When he returns to us, I bet he's a totally new person."

Kankuro sighed. "You're right, Temari. I know you are. But still...I'm gonna miss him."

Temari chuckled ruefully. "Me, too," she said simply. "Me, too."

Gaara had climbed to the back of the ox cart and was watching as his siblings faded from his sight. Once they were gone, he made his way to the front and sat beside his two new companions. He never looked back again.

Hiruzen

Hiruzen sighed as he read the newest message from his spy in the Sand Village. Naruto and Hinata had taken the son of the Kazekage with them when they left that village. Even worse, the boy was the jinchuriki of the One-Tailed Tanuki, Shukaku. Summoning a monkey to him, he wrote out a brief message for his student. The monkey briefly noted the name on the scroll and bowed to Hiruzen before vanishing. Burying his face in his hands, Hiruzen asked the empty room, "What in the hell have you gotten yourself mixed up in, Naruto?"

Jiraiya

Jiraiya rolled his eyes as a monkey appeared on the floor of the bathroom in front of him. _"Really Sensei?"_ he thought to himself. _"I wonder if his bad sense of timing is a skill or just unhappy coincidence..."_ The Toad Sage chuckled at this thought, then took the scroll that the small monkey was holding out to him. The monkey promptly vanished, holding its nose, once the scroll was delivered. Jiraiya chuckled ruefully. _"Blame Sensei for that one,"_ he thought. _"It's not my fault he sent you to deliver this to me _now_ of all times."_

Having had his laugh, Jiraiya opened the scroll. After reading it, all thought of levity left him as the contents of the scroll sunk in. The scroll's contents, as usual, were short, vague, and in code, but Jiraiya got the gist of it easily enough, and what he got was enough to make him feel like his whole world was crashing down around him.

"Foundling and baggage have left sandy nest. Ox cart now contains an egg of sand," the scroll read. Jiraiya was still utterly baffled by that "ox cart" business. He was convinced that had to be a code for something, but he had absolutely no clue what it could be. He did know that whatever it was, Naruto and his "baggage", as the Hokage had so affectionately dubbed Hinata, were on it. He also knew there was only one thing "egg of sand" could refer to, and that was the son of the Kazekage. Jiraiya had heard stories about that boy and how dangerous he was. If Naruto and Hinata had been tricked into taking him with them...Jiraiya shivered.

"Naruto, you had better be safe when I find you. If you aren't, I'll...I'll...I don't know what the hell I'll do, you just better be safe!" he said aloud. He huffed at his inability to come up with an appropriate threat for what he'd do if Naruto wasn't okay when he got to him, then rolled his eyes at himself for vicariously threatening someone about what _he_ would do to them if they didn't live long enough for him to get to them. Shaking his head, Jiraiya finished up his business and made his way to bed. It was getting late, and that message had taken a lot out of him.

Naruto

Naruto was perfectly content to allow Gaara to direct them through the desert for the next several days. He was slowly becoming familiar with certain features of the desert, but it still largely just looked like sand, sand, and more sand in all directions to him. Gaara, though, was able to direct them where to go to find water, where to go to find shelter from the desert winds, and even where they would likely find various small creatures, like lizards and snakes, which they could use to complement their food supply. Having Gaara along was an immense help for the first week or so.

After they had been traveling around the desert, seemingly aimlessly, for nine days, Naruto slowly realized Gaara was primarily leading them eastward. "Where are we going, Gaara?" Naruto asked him one afternoon.

Gaara smiled and answered, "There's a cave I found one time when I managed to sneak out of the village. It's right on the border between the Desert of Wind and the forest in the Land of Fire. No one knows it's there but me, and it's a great place to hide out and watch the border patrols both here in the Land of Wind and in the Land of Fire. Plus, if you're careful, you can sneak across the border and hunt in the forests over there, and there's a lake not far from there, too. It's about as close to an oasis as you'll find in the Desert of Wind."

Naruto considered this. "It sounds like a good place to hole up for a while. Maybe we could even get some training in there. All right, then, Gaara. Lead on," he said after a moment. Hinata nodded. She liked the sound of it, too.

"It's also really cool in there," Gaara said. "Even on the hottest days in the desert, the cave stays nice and cool." After a moment, the redhead chuckled and added, "And even on the coldest nights, it stays warm."

Naruto smiled. This cave of Gaara's was sounding more and more ideal all the time. _"It almost sounds like a safe-house of some kind,"_ he thought to himself. It wouldn't be long before he would be kicking himself for not giving more consideration to that thought.

Jiraiya

Jiraiya snarled as he read the newest scroll he had received from his old sensei. "Foundling, baggage, and egg are all lost to the sandy eyes of the fire shadow. Location and condition unknown," the scroll read. There was nothing in the world Jiraiya hated more than being kept in the dark. And this scroll didn't just keep him in the dark, it was sent as a blatant statement that he _was_ in the dark. It almost felt like his old master was rubbing his lack of knowledge in his face.

Shaking his head, Jiraiya told himself, _"Sensei wouldn't do that. He's just trying to keep me apprised of the situation."_ Still, Jiraiya hated feeling helpless and clueless, and having his godson out there, wandering around in the desert with the most dangerous child ever pretty much with him was making him feel exactly that. It wasn't a pleasant experience for the old sage. Jiraiya went over his schedule for the thousandth time. There was simply nothing he could do yet to speed things up with his mission. His chance was coming soon, but it just wasn't coming fast enough for the white-haired man.

Throwing his head back and pulling on his long mane of hair, Jiraiya let out a primal scream of pure frustration. It was heard over a mile away, and those who were unlucky enough to hear it would later say it sounded like the shrieking of a demon. People a full mile away from Jiraiya claimed the sound had made the hair on the back of their necks stand on end and given them goosebumps all over their arms and legs. It was a chilling sound, to say the least. After a minute, the wordless scream faded, and Jiraiya ended up sitting on the floor, arms around his legs, rocking back and forth. The man was crying, sobbing even. He kept saying over and over in a small, pitiful voice, "Naruto, please be okay. Please...please..."

A/N: Man...tormenting Jiraiya like that is a hard thing to do. In a sense, I think he kind of deserves to feel that way because of how he abandoned Naruto canonically, but still, I like the guy, so putting him through this isn't easy. I hope you all enjoyed this one, and I'll do my best to get the next one out soon!


End file.
